The Batman Plot Synopsis
Batman is back and this time it’s Robert Pattinson donning the mask and cape. As the movie begins, we find out he has been working as a vigilante for two years, so we know that he hasn’t quite established himself as Gotham’s saviour just yet.
Bruce is on a quest for justice to bring down the city’s criminals, with the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon (Jeffrey Wright), whom he joins at Gotham’s various crime scenes. As the plot unfolds, it is discovered a serial killer is at large in Gotham as a series of murders are discovered.
Who Is The Movie’s Villain?
There are a number of villains in the movie, including The Penguin (Colin Farrell) and powerful mob boss Carmine Falcone (John Turturro). However, the person responsible for the murders is The Riddler (Paul Dano), who leaves an enveloped clue at each crime scene for Batman to decipher.
Like Batman, The Riddler is on a personal crusade for justice, although he is methodically taking out the corrupt dignitaries of Gotham, including the city’s mayor. To complicate matters for Batman, he also has Bruce Wayne in his sights as The Riddler thinks his parents had ties to Falcone.
Batman needs to prevent The Riddler from committing any more murders while also protecting his own identity in the process. As he seeks to find this nefarious serial killer, he has help from Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman (Zoe Kravitz), who has her own reasons for getting involved in the case Batman is tied up in.
How Does Batman Solve The Case?
Batman has to solve the clues that The Riddler leaves behind. One such cypher is ‘el rata alada’ (the rat with wings), which leads Bruce to Oswald Cobblepot (The Penguin). After a high-speed car chase, Batman captures Cobblepot, and this leads him to new information regarding what The Riddler is up to next.
Unfortunately, the plans he uncovers involve his home, where The Riddler has mailed a bomb. Bruce Wayne, (the intended recipient), isn’t home to pick up the explosive package of course, but Alfred is, and Batman is too late to protect his friend and mentor.
Thankfully, Alfred isn’t killed, but Batman still wants his revenge on The Riddler. After finding the location of his lair, he discovers the villain’s real identity is Edward Nashton. Fortunately, the puzzling serial killer isn’t too far away as a police alert points to Nashton’s location: a nearby diner.
The Riddler is arrested and locked up and after meeting with him, Batman discovers his grand plan: to destroy Gotham, which The Riddler believes is beyond saving. Batman heads to the villain’s apartment and rips up the carpet in search of more clues. He finds a map that reveals the location of several bombsites that have been placed to destroy the city’s sea walls.
When these bombs go off, The Riddler’s plans will come to fruition as the corrupt denizens of the city (and everybody else) will be killed when city-wide flooding wipes them all out.
Does Batman Save The Day?
Unfortunately, Batman doesn’t make it to the bombs in time. When they go off, the seawall explodes and mass flooding begins. Thankfully, the police, after being alerted to The Riddler’s plans, have set up evacuation areas. Batman and Catwoman, after fighting off a number of faux Riddlers, do what they can to rescue Gotham’s citizens. They may not have stopped the villain’s master plan but they are able to save the lives of most of the civilians.
What Happens To The Riddler?
As the movie closes, The Riddler is still in prison. We hear him talking about his plan to end Gotham with another inmate. The identity of this other prisoner? Well, he has a very distinctive laugh so it’s clear that he is The Joker.
While we don’t fully see his face, the director has confirmed it is Barry Keough (The Eternals) playing the role. This is where we leave both villains but it is likely that they won’t stay locked up for long.
Do Batman And Catwoman Ride Off Into The Sunset Together?
Viewers of the movie will already know that Batman and Catwoman have a thing for one another but as the movie ends, they both go their separate ways. As Batman rides off on his motorcycle, he takes a look back at Catwoman from his mirror, so it’s clear he is still interested in her. Does he love her? Probably, but as he has the future of Gotham to save, any long-term relationship with Catwoman has to be put on the backburner.
Is There A Post-Credits Scene?
Surprisingly no, but the URL of The Riddler’s website pops up at the end. You can visit it yourself – https://www.rataalada.com/ – although there isn’t a lot of info on there at the moment. Still, perhaps there are clues that you need to decipher yourself after examining the contents of The Riddler’s web pages.
Read More: The Batman Movie Review
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